We were overjoyed when we found out that I was expecting a sibling for Everett. And when we learned Liam was a little boy, we couldn’t believe how blessed we were. Two little boys…brothers! For 9 months we waited patiently and happily for little Liam’s arrival. But I’ll have to confess…the night before I was induced with Liam, I broke down a little bit.

After 9 months, it dawned on me that it wouldn’t be just the three of us anymore. How would I manage a newborn and all of Everett’s therapies and school activities? How was I going to balance work and family with two little ones with different developmental needs? Would a new baby take away from Everett’s quality of life? Will I love this baby as much as Everett? What had we done?!?! This fear makes me lol now, and was totally unwarranted (and probably hormonal). Even though these sweet brothers have their ups and downs (no pun intended!), they complete each other and our sweet little family. This photo is one that marks the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Here’s to brothers :).   Continue reading Confessions of a Rockin mom #28: Fears related to having more children

When I was about 7 1/2 months pregnant with Everett, Vic & I went out to dinner one night at one of our favorite local restaurants, an Italian joint. I distinctly remember that night. I remember what I wore, I remember what I ordered, and I remember where I sat. I remember these (what would seem like mundane) events, because that evening a young man with Down syndrome chose our table for us, seated us, handed us our menus, and began telling us what his favorite menu items were (including HIS banana pudding recipe in the dessert section). This young man was very professional, well-spoken, and it was obvious he was the most popular guy at the restaurant. Everyone, literally everyone, knew his name. Vic & I talked on the way home about what a neat experience it was, seeing this young man in action. Days later, Everett was born and diagnosed. A lot of people began telling me everything Everett wouldn’t be able to do. He’ll never go to college they said, work, or learn how to snow ski, etc. And every time someone would say things like this, I would think to myself, “but what about that guy at the Italian restaurant?” It’s so funny to me now that I used to think of Austin Underwood as “that guy at the Italian restaurant.” He is a good family friend of ours now, as well as his amazing mom Jan. If you’ve never met Austin (which would surprise me, pretty sure everyone in our area knows him), then you should. He’ll tell you all about his new business venture, his old college days, and how he loves to go snow skiing every year ?.

On a side note, if you’d like to learn more about Austin’s business venture (Austin’s Underdawgs) and donate to the cause, here is the link! It’s a great way to support a business that is giving back to the differently-abled community!!! https://www.pieshell.com/projects/austins-underdawgs Continue reading Confessions of a Rockin mom #25: Fears related to growing up

When Everett was about 6 months old we took him to have his picture made with Santa at a local mall. When we got settled into the long line of families waiting for their obligatory Santa photos, we realized the parents in front of us had a daughter with Down syndrome. Her name was Meagan and she was about 5-years-old. Meagan was an adorable little girl but I noticed her mom was having a hard time wrangling her because Meagan liked to run away. She darted all over that mall with her mother trailing her from store to store. And I’ll have to confess…this concerned me. While I was glad to see that Meagan was so physically active, I envisioned a future for myself that would involve me wrangling Everett. A lot. This fear was definitely warranted. Like Meagan, Everett has a mind of his own. And when he gets it in his mind to go somewhere…he runs for it. I chase him down and practically hogtie him every morning when it’s time to get dressed. And you should see the scene he makes when it’s time to leave a playground. This trend becomes really concerning when parking lots are involved, so I came up with a temporary solution. As you can see in this photo, however, the “runaway” fear isn’t necessarily Down syndrome specific ?. 

Continue reading Confessions of a Rockin mom #22: Fear of behavior issues